Zurich Herald, 1930-12-04, Page 6CHRISTMAS LEGENDS.
By Elizabeth Palmer but a dignified gentleman who travel•
2'heer is no holiday is the whole ed in state, on a white horse and with
year around which so many traditions a black wasthepoem. "'Tomas the Night
and legends cluster as Christmas, But, BoPore Christmas" that gave Canadian
.W1.2 -hi Christmas, St, Nicholas, Santa
Claus, are happily discussed for weeks children the Santa Claus we know to -
by every child in Christendom, and day This fatuous poem, which has
while every family is anticipating the been printed and reprinted the world
Christmas tree, the hanging of stock- over with every recurring Christmas,
lugs, decorations or holly atd green- has become one of the most familiar
ery, putting a candle in the window and best -loved poems in the language,
aaatd burning a Yule log, few children It was written by Clement Clarke
know the origin of these customs. Moore for his two daughters, and first
smallest child knows that read to them ou the evening of De-
TheChristmas is celebrated as tate birth -
published
23, 1822. A year later it was
clay of Christ. Yet there is no histori_ published in the Troy (N.Y.) Sentinel,
cal record that December 25 was the and has since ,become immortal.
actual date of the birth of Christ. His- Moore was been July 5, 1779, in a
torians and astronomers agree that it big white house above the Hudson,
Suss about the time of the winter sol then situated in a suburb known as
stice, when the clays were the shortest Chelsea, now in the Theraeigb helpd of
in the year—near December 21. The Greenwich Village. There he spent
early Christmas celebrations were not his childhood, married, and raised a
cto one data 'There was re large family of children, All around
confined
joking from December 10 to January the neighborhood were scattered the.
farms of the descendants of the early
6. The latter date is now known as Dutch settlers, and as a boy young
Twelfth -night. Moore became familiar with the le -
It was not until the reign of the geed of St. Nicholas, which he trans -
Christian emperor, Constantine, in the formed into the American Santa
Mirth century, that the observance of Claus. He called the poem the "Visit
Christmas became an established sus- of St. Nicholas," but its lovers changed
tom, since the early Christians con -
it to "'Twas the Night Before Christ-
sidered the observance of birthdays a mas."
pagan custom. The exchange of Itt this poem Santa Claus was for.
Christmas gifts has come gradually, the first time introduced to the child
-
a beautiful, unselfish custom in corn ren of .America with the form and the
memoration of the greatest gift of all features and the characteristics by
time to the world—the Christ Child. which he is known to -day. Here for
The giving of gifts also has a religi- the first time they were told exactly
ous significance grounded on the act how he looked and what kind of a
of the Persian Magi in, laying gold, chap he was;
frankincense and myrrh before the .,His eyes—how they twinkled; his
Babe in the manger. dimples, how merry!
A Christmas tree as part of the boli- His cheeks were like roses, his nose
day pbservance originated at the time like a cherry!
of the conversion of the •German His droll little mouth was drawn up
tribes, when St. Bouiface came, one like a bow
Christmas Day about 1,200 years ago, And the beard of his chic was as white
upon a pagan group gathered under as the snow.
the great "Thunder Oak," about to Since then every .child has been able
sacrifice a little boy to their god, Thor. to picture in his mind the jolly old.
All eyes were fixed upon a priest in fellow who' comes clattering over the
white robes who held a great hammer roof with his eight tiny reindeer, scat
paired over the head of the child. tering joy and gladness and gifts.
When it was about to fall, St. Boniface Though the author of the poem gave
strode up to the priest, stayed his his life to books and learning and lit -
hand, and cried out to the people to erary work, he is remembered only
cease their false worship. He told by the lines which gave us Santa
them the story of the birth of the Claus.
Child at Bethlehem, and felling a it is told that once upon a time St,
small fir tree, gave it to them, saying: Nicholas wanted to help a poor but
"Take this for your Christmas tree,
and each year, when the feast day ar- proud nobleman, and climbing to the
rives, set it up in your homes and with roof of the man's home dropped some
coins down the chimney. The coins
joy and song celebrate the birthday happened to light in the mau's stock -
of Christ." ings, which he had hung by the fire -
The tree at first was not used as a place to dry. The gift was considered
gift -bearer, but was purely symbolical by the nobleman to be of superna-
-the tree itself of Christ's grandeur rural origin, and, naturally, others
and majesty, and the green of His im• took up the custom of hanging stock
mortality. Ings by the fireplace. From this, sup-
The custom of placing lights on the posedly, developed the tradition that
tree is generally attributed to Martin Santa Claus comes down the chimney
Luther, who, on walking home one to bring his gifts to the inmates of the
Christmas Eve, was filled with awe at .house.
the beauty of the stars. Going home Holly has been popular for decora-
he tried to describe it to his wife by tions since the time of the Druids. It
placing some lighted candles in the is regarded as the special tree of the
branches of the Christmas tree, say fairies, but there is a superstition that
ing: "This is like the Christmas sky, it is unlucky to take holly into the
St. Nicholas of Armeon was a miser, house before Christmas. The cradles
rich in lands and flocks and• herds. He of Italian children are often decorated
came to Bethlehem dressed as a beg with holly to ward off evil. The faces
gar, that he might avoid paying the of babies in India and Persia are
full taxes demanded by the officers of
Caesar. As he objected to paying for sometimes washed in a liquid in which
a
a room at the inn, he was sleeping in holly bark has Ueee soaked, as e
the stable beside his donkey when Charm against wackd spirits. The
use of holly at Christmas
there came to the stable Joseph and . is thought
Mary, the Mother of Jesus. to bring good luck to the house in
When the Christ Child lay in the which it is used.
manger beside Mary and gifts were The mistletoe is a parasite which
being offered unto Him, Nicholas, grows not only on oaks, but is found
aroused from his sleep, joined the on pecan, hickory, locust, Osage, sae
givers through curiosity. Then grip- safras, persimmon, ash, and various
ped by some compelling force, he frust trees, notably apple, cherry and
knelt by the side of Mary, now holding pear trees. But it prefers the oak
lzer Babe. Looking at those two, trees, and the superstitious and mys-
Mother and Babe Divine• grim shack- terious Druids, the priests of the pa-
les fell from the heart of Nicholas of gens of the British Isles and the lands
Armeon on the south side of the English nel,Chan-
got the idea that the mistletoe
,;
My Ring! My King!" he cried,
"ever will I serye Thee, and Thee was the soul of the oak and that, as
only."• it had lost its foliage, it was an im-
A tiny hand stretched out toward mortal thing and was a symbol of
•
Nicholas as though in benediction, everlasting life.
and from outside came the faint echo: Wonderful powers and properties
"On `earth peace, to ,men good will," were attributed to the mistletoe, and
fumbling in his robe Nicholas drew when paganism passed, .the early
forth a gold piece and laid it among Christians clung to many of the pagan
the other gifts. ideas about the Plant. There was
The next morning, instead of plead -
British Royalty at Abyssiman Coronation
Duke of Gloucester' as ire appeared ;at • repent coronation. of Ras Tatari at Addis Ababa,; with heir apparent to
Abyssinian throne (left) and Earl of Airlie (right)'.1.n. procession to throne.
mas our northern ancestors would.
hang a branch of mistletoe .aver the
front door as a sign of good luck and
welcome. People entering under. it
exchanged kisses with the host and
his family, and in • this way kissing
and the mistletoe .became associated.
The Scandinavians used to.. kindle
great fires in honor of their god, Thor,
In some parts of old England, bring-
ing
ringing in the Yule log was the principal
ceremony of Ohristmae Eve.
The custom was for the serfs to
bring in a load of wood with them
when they came ,for the Christmas
feast, which was to last as long as it
took to "burn away a wet wheel"—a
section of green wood. Naturally the
"wet wheel' would not be a thin slice,
but a log. In later times the cere-
mony was attached to the bringing in
of the log." It was drawn into the hall
by the servants and each member of
the family in turn, sitting down on the
log, sang a Yule song and drank a
glass of ale. The log was then cast
into the fire with prayers for the safe-
ty of the house and the happiness of
its inmates until next Yuletide. •Part,
of the Yule log was preserved to light
the log of next year. •
The Yule log ' was nearly always an.
ash log, because a legend avers that
it was before an ashfire that the Holy.
Babe was first washed and dressed
by His mother.
Still another legend is responsible
for the custom of placing a thick,:
lighted, candle itt the window Christ-
mas
hristmas Eve, which is supposed to be
lighted at dusk and to remain through
the night:
"On every Christmas Eve the little
Christ -Child wanders all over the
world, bearing ou His shoulders a
bundle of evergreens. Through city
streets and country roads, up and
down hills, to the proudest castle and
lowliest hovel, through cold and storm
and sleet and ice, the Holy Child
travels to be welcomed or rejected at
the door at which He. pleads for suc-
cor. Those who would welcome Him
and long for His coming, set a lighted
candle irr the window to -guide Him
on His. way."
British Woman Flier
• . Reaches Osaka, Japan
Osaka, Japan—Hon. Mrs. Victor
Bruce, British motorist and aviator,
arrived here on Nov. 21st after a lone
flight from London, which site left
September 25.
She<was welcomed by Japanese and
British ' reeldents and was given a
banquet• Newspapers here lauded
her dogged flight across two contin-
ents to •.J'apan, commenting that she
was the first woman to attempt the
good luck in mistletoe, so at Christ- dangerous journey;
Festive Dishes
For Holidays
When December appears on the,
calendar, everyone thinks of some-
thing good to eat. Winter's invigorat-
ing air produces hearty appetites. The
spirit of hospitality which always is
stimulated by the approach of the
winter holidays, gives every/woman
the desire to entertain her friends.
New recipes are born and christen-
ed
hristened every day in Canadian households.
It is this adventuring with food com-
binations that makes for progress in
cooking. Without experiments in
kitchens, cookery would be in a fixed
state. No variety would be found in
meals.
What are some of the recently born
dishes? Well, here are a few crea-
tions that have, been tried with much
Ban on Love Birds
And Parrots Lifted
Dominion Decides Danger
From Psittacosis •1s Thing
of the Past
Ottawa—Love birds may pow be
imported into Canada. So also may
parrots, parrakeets, cockatoos, me,
saws, lories and lorikeets, The bat
placed on their importation some
months ago has been removed,
Love birds, as might be expected
froth their name, sometimes make
people sick, The same is the ease
with parrots and the other pets men-
tioned above. They are subject to• a
disease termed psittacosis and they
are likely to: give it to humans, The
mortality is very high among humans
who contract it. •
Some time ago a number of case!.
were reported from Europe, officials
of the Agricultural Department be-
came alarmed and put a ban 'on birds
Subject to such an ailment. .Since
that, however, . the, disease seems to
have disappeared. A circular' inform-
ing customs collectors of the remover
of the ban went forward recently.
Tornado Ravaged.
Village Rebuilds
24 Were- Killed In Oklahoma
Suburb, and Over 100
Injured
Oklahoma City . — Residents of the
for those who must resist the tempts- store's wrecked. village of Bethany nes,
tion of pies and .puddings { here have started to rebuild their
If you are planning on serving wild' crushed homes and bury their dead,
`fowl, be sure .to make the dressing For the first time since a 'cyclone
rich in fat to relieve the natural dry-
ness of the meat.
While the cranberry season is on,
don't neglect to can some sauce and
make some jelly for other occasions.
This acid berry' combines well with
summer menus.
Christmas isn't Christmas unless
there's candy for the kiddies. The
grown-ups too, come in for their share.
Perhaps if it is homemade, it will be
a bit more inviting and unusual. You
can make up any of the following re-
cipes now. and they will be just right
for the 26th if wrapped in wax paper.
success:
• .Cranberry Pudding
3s cup, fat, 1 cup sugar, 11 cup milk;
11/Z cups cranberries: 2 'eggs, 31/ cups
flour, 4 . tsps.baking powder, 3/2 tsps.
salt. Cream fat, add sugar and sift
.the rest of the dry ingredients with
the 'flour. Beat eggs and add to first.
mixture. Add the dry ingredients al-
ternately with the milk. Stir in`ber
ries• Pour in buttered molds, cover,
and steam three hours for a large
mold and one hour for small •ones.
Nut Bread
2 5-S cups flour, 4 tsps. baking pow-'
der, 1 tsp. salt, 5-8 cup sugar, 11,'y cups
milk, 2 eggs, 1 cup.nut. meats, 4.tbs.
flour. Sift 2 5-8 cups fiour, baking
powder, and salt. Add sugar, milk,
and eggs slightly beaten and the
broken nut meats which have been
thoroughly mixed with the four table -
,spoonfuls fiour. Bake in a slow oven
for•15 minutes; then increase the heat
and bake in a moderate over one hour.
Apple Salad
Mix together 1 cup shredded cabbage,
1 dup apple, cut in strips, % cup each
raisins and nutmeats and sufficient
salad dressing to moisten Serve in
cabbage shells or in red ,apples, hol-
lowed out to make cup. Garnish with
'finely cut strips of 'apple with red
skin lett•on. .
ing poverty as he had intended, Nish.
olas was the first in the line of tax-
payers waiting to make his declara-
tion. The collectors marveled that
one dressed so poorly should pay so
richly. Straight from tax paying,
Nicholas went to the place of mer-
eliandise where children congregated,
With arms filled and donkey laden,
he fated forth to the poorer places
and there dispensed his gifts. He was
soon the center of a throng of happy
children. In answer to a question, he
said: "I am Nicholas of Armeon."
"Bail, St, Nicholas," burst upon the
air.
"Nir•hoias, and I serve my King," he
retreated. -
"Caesar?" asked a curious mother.
- "Nay, not Caesar, but the new-born
Ring bt' Love." And so carne the first
St. Nicholas at Christmastide.
The Santa Claus that all Canadian
:children know and who travelled into
°thee lands during the past century
Is only 100 years old, He is the des-
cendant of the good St. Nicholas, Who
;was the gift -bearer for the little Dutch
Children originally, and was borrowed"'
In turn by the Belgians, Frenolt, Span-
felt and English as the,pati'on saint at
Citrlstnias. But St Nicholas was not
tite jolly Old fellow we know, with
sieii;h anereirideer and jingling bells;,
s
Commodore Says "Goodbye'
Sir Arthur Itostra:1 (right), noted commodore of Cunard fleet, bids `ood-,
eye to his chief officer, Capt. 1lissett, ou bridge Of Berengaria its he retires
titer 45 -years service.
Baked Oysters .
Beat 1 eeg, and add one cup oysters
and their liquid, 2-3 cup cracker
crumbs, lea teaspoon salt and a little
pepper. Butter a pie plate and turn
mixture into this. ,Sprinkle with. 1-3
cup cracker c-runtbe, dot with butter
and bake until crumbs are crisp and
brown. Serve hot with cranberry
sauce. ' Celery and olives also'rnake a
pleasing accompaniment for this fes-
tive dish.
Stuffed Fruits
Use dried prunes, aprteots, figs, or
dates. , Steam 16 minutes. Make an
incision itt each Piece of fruit. with a
.sharp -pointed paling knife. Stuff
with • fondant and cover with a nut
Meat. Roll in sugar. If not to be
oaten immediately wrap in oiled paper
and pack in tits,' The fruits improve
itt flavor if allowed to stand a few
'weeks: Pineapple fondant is fine to
use in stuffing these fruits.
Pineapple 'Fondant
2 cups sugar, % cup water, 4 lbs.
crushed pineapple. Put sugar and
water its pan and stir until dissolved.
Cook to 256 degrees : without stir-
ring, keeping' sides - of pan washed
down with a soft •cloth moistened in
,cool water and tied over the tines of
a silver Pork. Add crushed .pitleap-
ple, drained from the syrup and cook
to 240 clog. F'., .which is just beyond
the soft .ball stage. Turn on a" platter
wet with cold water. Wheii cool,
work with a spatula or knife. lase
this fondant as the centers for bon-
bons, roll the pieces lit nuts or stuff
itt dried fruits. It is, almost essential
to employ a candy• thermometer in
Making fondants ettectetsfully.
• Alip'o eh:abet or mint ice served es is simply that of Orate beast' , the for,
" r, rarkbn^' tent tit will u ival1 mer is 'sniper to beings gifted 'with
in rod r,_1. a„t-;::, from 1;:haa the A t .. ,, s y tri o
`pulp ,•c.:r i scv:ti, Is a dessert catch your sweeties aye. rt"` ser .
Coffee Fondant
3 cups sugar, 1 cup water, 1. tbs.
white corn syrup, 3 ozs. coffee, pul-
verized. Tie coffee loosely in cheese-
cloth, and cook with fondant to 241F.,
struck the village at noon Nov, 20,
killing 24, injuring more than 100 and
wrecking 100 homes aad business es-
tablishments, order was restored in
the settlement of 2,000 inhabitants.
Rehabilitation was started with al-
most every charitable organlzatioa in
the state lending aid.
Doctors, treating injured in Oklaho•
ma City hospitals, announced • eight
•more of the injured may die. More
than 40 still are being treated. Fun-
arol arrangements had not been com-
pleted except for the four Carrel Creek
students who were killed when the
little rural school was destroyed by
the wind. They will be btuied at
their school house.
Damage done to the little village,
-reach $600,000 officials agreed.
without stirring, but wiping the sides:winter's Here of the saucepan Pour onto cold plat- 'r1
Now -
ter, and when lukewarm, beat., with
butter paddle. Then knead well. Mold
into shape with butternuts, or press
into a buttered tin, frost with boiled
frosting and sprinkle, with outs, then
cut into squares.
Baked' Fudge
2 eggs, 1 cupsugar, % cup flour,
1-3,cup butter, 4 squares chocolate, 1/�
cup nut meats, 1 tsp. vanilla. Break
nut meats into pieces and crisp in
oven. Melt chocolate and butter in
double boiler, add sugar and eggs
beaten light, then flour mixed with
nuts. Add vanilla. Pour into greased
tin ;1/4. inch thick and bake at 350 -
until a toothpick comes• clean. Do not
have the oven. hot as you would for
cookies, since the fudge must be soft,
not crisp. Cut into squares with sharp
knife while warm.
Divinity udge
P 2 cups sugar, 1/z cup white corn
-Syrup, 1/a cup water, 1-8 tsp. salt, i,
tbs. vinegar. Cook to 260 F., without
stirring, but wiping sides of saucepan
to prevent crystallization. Pour hot
syrup slowly into stiffly* beaten whites
of two eggs. Sit in a low chair, pour
With left hand, and beat with right
hand, using large bowl and wire Whip.
Add % teaspoonful »each lemon and
almond extract. When quite thick,
drop' by spoonfuls on heavily wasted
paper, and serve. If to be kept, pour
into square buttered tin, mark lute
squares.
Maple Fudge
1 lb. maple sugar (21' cups), • cup
water, 1 tbs. light corn syrup, 3•'i cup
thin cream, 23 cup nut pleats. Let
Keep Your Health
A Few Hints on How to Be
Healthy Though Hiber-
natmg
Not by bread alone doth man live
but by a well-balanced diet he may
best protect himself against the rig-
ors -of winter.
The rules of right eating, a recent
New York State department of health
radio broadcast tells, are compara-
tively simple. Daily diet should be
constructed around the so-called pro-
tective foods, pure milk, fruits, and
especially green leafy vegetables:
If these necessary • and compare•
tively inexpensive foodds form the
basis of diet natural appetite will
likely take care of other bodily needs,
Every child should drink one quart,
every adult at least one pint of pure
,milk—the nearly -perfect food—every
day. Fruits such as oranges, lemons,
berries, peaches, apples, and green
vegetables as lettuce, spinach, celery,
,cabbage kale, beet greens and tui•
nip greens are ood.
Eggs, cereals, meats and fish help,
but the protective foods do actually
protect aainst the chills and ills of
winter. Cod liver oil is a protector,
being rich in vitamin D, the' summer
eut.sltine vitamin, and vitamin A.
which is found in butter • and mills.
Quake in Albania
• Takes 30 Lives
Vienna—A Government despatch
maple sugar and ,liquids stand toy from Tirana reported that a violent
gether until sugar is dissolved, cook earthcltiake on .Nov. 21st had caused
to 236 F., a soft •ball, stirring to keep 30 deaths in the Albanian •dist'•ict of
the maple. sugar from curdling the Valera.
milk. Set saucepan into basin of cold The despatch added that great num-
water, and when lukewarm, beat until hers were injured itt the collapse of
creamy, add nuts. Beat just as long numerous houses, with heavy •material
as possible, then turn into oiled tin losses in Messaplik, Palase, Tericoei
and cut into squares. and Dermi.
The entire population of Telgac was
made homeless.
The Valona district of Albania is a
mountainous region in the Soethers r
Part of the country along the Adriatic
Sea. It is directly across the Strait
of Otranto from the heel of the Ital•
fan boot,
ilying Ships Are Big
Hope of Aviation
Toronto. — The future oaf aviation
does not lie in lighter -than -air craft,
C,apta.in Stafford Lusk told membere.
of the Canadian Progress Club al
their recent lun'iBoon here. Rather,
he said, it Iles in ships like the great
German plane, the 11O -X•
Captain Lusk endeavored to im•
press the safety of flying,' Aviation,
he declared, is past the day of Cie
perirnentation,
There ate tWoways of ending a die.
pine--disciissioti and force; the latter: